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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. bound — tied together
  5. craft — a skill
  6. tear — from crying
  7. mate — a friend
  8. saw — the tool
  9. plane — a tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. tear — to rip
  12. craft — boats
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. bound — obliged
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mate — a partner
  17. bound — certain
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. tear — from crying
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mine — an explosive

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com